


FICTOBER 2018

by tremaineblackbourne (Silentiere)



Category: Warcross - Marie Lu, Warcross Series, Wildcard - Marie Lu
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, Alternate Universe - Magic, Bets & Wagers, Card Games, Cats, Engagement, F/M, Fictober, Gen, Guns, Hide and Seek, M/M, Mario Kart, Racing, Sirens, Stargazing, Thunderstorms, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-01
Updated: 2018-12-28
Packaged: 2019-07-23 11:20:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 14,526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16157957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silentiere/pseuds/tremaineblackbourne
Summary: Collection of fictober prompts. Not sure if I'll do all of them. Characters and tags will be updated as each fic is added. Some fics contain Wildcard spoilers (the chapter names with "Wildcard" in them).List of characters in each fic is in "chapter" 1my tumblr





	1. Table of Contents

Just a note: Heart Squad refers to Hammie, Emika, Asher, Roshan, and Tremaine.

 

Characters in each fic:

  1. Table of Contents
  2. Emika, Zero, Ziggy [WILDCARD SPOILERS]
  3. Yuebin, Ziggy
  4. Roshan, Tremaine [Canon Divergence] [WILDCARD SPOILERS]
  5. Jena, Roshan, Tremaine (+bg Hammie) [College AU]
  6. Abeni, Emika (+bg Ren) [Flower Shop, College AU]
  7. Darren, Max, Tremaine [WILDCARD SPOILERS]
  8. Jesse, Roshan, Tremaine [POST WILDCARD]
  9. Asher, Hammie
  10. Jax, Tremaine (+bg Zero) [WILDCARD SPOILERS]
  11. Jena, Roshan, Tremaine [College AU]
  12. Roshan, Tremaine (+Roshan's parents) [WILDCARD SPOILERS]
  13. Roshan, Tremaine [POST WILDCARD]
  14. Ren, Emika, Tremaine [Magic AU]
  15. Emika, Jax, Tremaine [Magic AU]
  16. Roshan, Tremaine
  17. Heart Squad, Abeni, Ivo, Jena, Penn, Shahira, Yuebin, Ziggy
  18. Roshan, Tremaine [College AU]
  19. Abeni, Emika [Flower Shop, College AU]
  20. Emika, Hideo [College AU]
  21. Roshan, Tremaine (+bg Phoenix Riders, Demon Brigade, Jax, Jesse) [POST WILDCARD]
  22. Jesse, Tremaine [POST WILDCARD]
  23. Heart Squad
  24. Jax, Zero
  25. Emika, Tremaine, Zero [Magic AU]
  26. Emika, Tremaine [Magic AU]
  27. Abeni, Emika, Ziggy [College AU]
  28. Roshan, Tremaine [WILDCARD SPOILERS]
  29. Roshan, Tremaine [WILDCARD SPOILERS]
  30. Roshan, Tremaine [College AU]
  31. Roshan, Tremaine [POST WILDCARD]




	2. Table of Contents

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ziggy is curious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Post-canon.

“So, this Zero was not actually a person, by an A.I.?” Ziggy asked. “And he’s also Hideo’s brother?”

“Sort of. Zero was the A.I. being controlled by Taylor, and Sasuke was being controlled by him. But now that she’s dead, Sasuke has control over Zero,” Emika said.

“I thought he was dead?”

At the sound of that, an avatar dressed in black sweater materialized in front of the pair. “Legally, yes,” Sasuke said.

Ziggy’s eyes widened. “He’s been listening the entire time?”

“I thought I told you not to eavesdrop on people,” Emika said to him.

“If you talk about me, I think I have the right to join the conversation,” he replied. Sasuke turned his attention to the other girl. “Hello, Ziggy. I don’t think we’ve formally met. ”

“Hi,” she said. “Um, should I call you Sasuke or Zero?”

“I’m both, so either is fine,” he said.

Ziggy was silent for a moment, gathering her thoughts. “You’re like a ghost, yeah?”

Sasuke smiled. “I suppose I am,” he said.

“I mean, he _can_ walk through walls,” Emika said. “I’ve seen it happen.”

“Can ghosts feel things?” Ziggy asked. She pressed her fingertip against his arm. “Can you feel this?”

“I’m aware that you’re touching my avatar,” he said, “but no, I can’t.”

Ziggy frowned. “Really? You feel nothing?”

“Hard to feel things when you don’t have a body,” he said. “Or if you’re dead.”

“I guess,” Ziggy murmured. “Well, I can check off ‘trying to touch a ghost’ on my bucket list now.”

“Are you into paranormal things? Supernatural stuff and all that?” he asked.

“A bit,” she said, smiling. “It’s interesting to think about, you know?”

“Maybe you should go cryptid hunting. I think you’d find that fun,” he said. “Anyway, it was nice to meet you. I’ll see you around.”

His avatar flickered away.

“Hey, Emika,” Ziggy said. “What’s a cryptid?”

She sighed. Explaining this was going to take a while. “Well…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (OCT 8TH- apparently this scene is sorta canon (except it's Emika and not Ziggy that does it) and I only found this out after rereading Wildcard. Woops.)


	3. People like you have no imagination. (Warcross)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ziggy wants to know what Yuebin's perfect day would be like.
> 
> Tags: Thunderstorms

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You could consider this Ziggy/Yuebin if you really wanted. No spoilers.

"Hey Yuebin, what's your idea of a perfect day?" Ziggy asked. 

"Storming," he replied. 

Ziggy waited for him to elaborate, but he didn't say anything more than that. "That's it? Nothing else?"

He shrugged. "Yeah."

"People like you have no imagination," she murmured.

"I think this is your way of getting someone to ask what your idea would be," he said. 

"I mean, yeah," she admitted. "But I ask because I actually want to know too."

"I don't think about these kinds of things as much as you do," he said. "Too many other things to worry about."

"Could I show you what one of my perfect days would be like? Maybe that'd help you think of something?" she asked.

"You have worlds already made for them? he asked.

She smiled sheepishly. "Possibly?"

"Okay, let me see."

Link with Ziggy Frost?

YES | NO

Yuebin accepted the invite. The scenery around him began to change as the Memory World loaded. It took a short while for everything to form, but when his avatar finally entered the World, he was standing at the top of a hill. In front of him was a field of white flowers, and far off in the distance, he could see the peaks of mountains.

Ziggy was close by, sitting back against the trunk of a tree. Her attention was focused toward the sky, watching the clouds navigate through the endless sea of blue. "So," she said, looking at Yuebin. "What do you think?" 

He sat down next to her. "Simple," he said. "It's nice."

"I thought you'd like it," she said. "Now, when you think of a stormy day, where would you be that would make it perfect? Somewhere outside, like this?"

"Inside," he said. 

"If you have something in mind, I need you to really think about it," she said. 

He closed his eyes and thought about his apartment back in China. He thought about the view he had from his bedroom window—of the ocean and the horizon, the wind and the thunder, the lightning and the rain. He decided that it would be dark outside, the only light coming from whenever lightning struck. He would have a cup of black tea, or perhaps a cigarette.

When he opened his eyes again, the world around them had changed. He was sitting cross-legged on the window sill, with Ziggy sitting across from him with her knees tucked in. For a moment, he was stunned—but he realized he was linked with Ziggy and that she could, effectively, read his mind.

"It feels like it'd be cold here," Ziggy said. "Is that what the tea is for?"

Yuebin nodded.

"I visit my World whenever I feel like there's too much going on," she said. "It helps me center myself, gives me something to focus on. Maybe this world could do the same for you."

"I think it could," he replied.

"I'll leave you to it, then," she said.

"You can stay if you want," he offered. "I don't mind."

"Okay."

They sat there for a while, silent except for the rain and thunder. But nonetheless, it was peaceful, and it was perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I use more commas than necessary but whatever.


	4. How can I trust you? (Wildcard, Tremaine/Roshan)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tremaine tells Roshan the truth.
> 
> Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wildcard spoilers. 
> 
> Fic contains things from Tremaine and Roshan's pasts, and thus, pretend that this fic is tagged accordingly about the things you know about them (since actually adding the tags would spoil Wildcard).
> 
> Takes place in an alternate universe where they talk before—well, you know—happens.

Maybe a phone call at one in the morning wasn't the best idea. Tremaine's had worse ones, though—that's how he got into this mess, really—but talking to Roshan in person would've required an amount of courage that he definitely did not have.

Roshan answered. _"You've got some nerve to call me this late at night."_

"I know, and I'm sorry," he said. "But I don't think I'll be able to say this in the morning, or any other time."

_"Talk."_

"I'm sorry. For everything."

There was a brief silence before Roshan responded. _"How can I trust you when you say that? After what you did?"_

"I can't make you trust me, but just listen to what I say, okay?"

_"Sure."_

"I didn't cheat on you. I know I said I did, but I really didn't."

_"You're a better liar than that. What, couldn't think of something more convincing to tell me?"_

"You can decide that everything I say is bullshit, or that you want nothing to do with me, or pretend I don't exist, or whatever," he said, "but can you do that after I talk, please? I've been trying to find a time to tell you this, but when would it ever be the right time to say something like that?"

_"If you didn't cheat on me, then why did you leave?"_

"I thought you deserved better than me," he admitted. "I don't understand how you ever fell in love with me. I don't know why you cared so much about some guy who got fucked up on pills and got into fights, when you could've just cared about someone else—someone that wasn't a complete mess." 

He sighed. "But you just wouldn't give up. Even after your dad said that I was just going to end up like my mum, you kept trying and trying, and you kept giving your heart and soul to someone that didn't deserve any of it. And I knew the only way you'd quit trying is if if you stopped caring. I hated how much of a burden I was to you and to everyone. So, I ran. I wanted you to find someone that could make you happier than I ever could, so I told you I cheated. And finally, you stopped wasting your time on me.

There was only silence on the other end. He checked to see if Roshan hung up, but the call was still going. "Are you still there?"

_"You made me think I wasn't good enough for you. But all this time, you just thought you weren't good enough for me."_

Hearing that made his heart shatter. With a trembling voice, he said, "You were always good enough. I'm sorry that I ever made you think that you weren't." 

" _I don't think I ever got over you."_

"I could say the same."

_"Let's continue this conversation in the morning, if that's all right."_

"Yeah, that's fine," he said. "Have a good night, Roshan."

_"Sweet dreams, love."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyway this sort of fic was supposed to be like, a separate thing, but I don't think I would've ever finished and published it if it was. 
> 
> I posted this on the 3rd but edited it on the 17th so if you were rereading and don't remember the ending being that way, that's why


	5. Will that be all? (Warcross)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An alternate universe where Tremaine and Roshan meet in a different way.
> 
> Tags: Alternative Universe - College/University

"Do you ever stop studying?" Jena asked, looking over at her roommate. "I swear, you've been in this room so long that you've become pale."

"I'm always pale," Tremaine replied, without looking up from the notebook in his lap. He was sitting on his bed, leaning his back against the wall.

"You need to take a break." She pulled the book away, resulting in a glare from him, but she remained unfazed. "That death stare doesn't work on me, Blackbourne," she said. "Come on, we're getting lunch. My treat."

"Only because you're paying," Tremaine said. He moved to get out of his bed. "Where are we going?"

"It'll be a surprise," she answered. "You'll like it, don't worry."

Jena headed out the door, and Tremaine followed. 

* * *

Jena took him to a restaurant located in the center of town. The facade of the building was painted a deep red. Above the door was an emblem of a golden bird with its wings spread out, and in between the two read a single word: PHOENIX.

When they entered, a hostess with curly black hair greeted them. On her nametag, it read  _Hammie_. "Party of two?" she asked.

"Yes," Jena said. "Usual spot, please."

"Right this way," she said, leading them to a table in the corner of the restaurant. 

While Tremaine sat down, he saw Jena whisper something to the hostess. Hammie responded with a smile and a nod, then returned back to the front of the restaurant.

"You know the people that work here?" Tremaine asked, as Jena sat down across from him.

"I'm a regular," she replied, taking two menus from the container they were being stored in on the wall, then handing one to him. "The tea's good here, by the way. They actually make it right."

Tremaine read through the menu, and by the time he was done, a waiter dressed in a scarlet vest holding a notepad and a pen came up to the table. "Welcome to the Phoenix," he said. "My name's Roshan, and I'll be your server."

Tremaine did his best not to stare, which was difficult, because  _no one should have any business looking that good in a uniform_. 

"You know, Roshan," Jena said, "you don't have to say that every time I come here."

"That's true, but you happened to bring someone with you." Roshan looked over at him. "First time here?"

"Yeah. I'm Tremaine, by the way."

"It's nice to meet you," he said, smiling. "Anyway, what would you like to order?"

"A croque monsieur," Tremaine said, "and black tea."

Roshan scribbled down his order. "And you, Jena?"

"A ham and cheese and a passion fruit iced tea."

"Will that be all?"

"Yes," she said.

"Your food will be here shortly," Roshan said, before he left the table.

Tremaine watched him go, and from the smirk on Jena's face, he wasn't being subtle. "He's single, you know. And he's smart. He could help you study," she suggested.

"I can't tell if you're joking or not."

"With the studying thing? I'm serious. He could probably read your textbook once and explain what it says in a way that's actually comprehensible. Then, with all that free time you'd have, you could get to know him."

Tremaine thought about it, then said, "Fine, but let me be the one to talk to him."

"Of course."

* * *

 

Roshan had just finished cleaning a table when he saw Tremaine walking over to him. "Need something?" he asked.

"Jena says you're smart," Tremaine said.

Roshan smiled. "I learn things pretty easily."

"How about understanding things? Like, English?"

"Yeah, I'm good at English. Do you need help with it?"

"Yes."

Roshan took out his notepad and wrote something down, then ripped the page and handed it to Tremaine. "Call me sometime after work, maybe I could help you study."

"That'd be great," Tremaine said. "Thanks."

"Sure thing, love."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're wondering what Jena said to Hammie, she asked for Roshan to be their waiter.
> 
> Also I put zero effort into thinking about what they'd actually order as food. And the ending. I finished this at 11 pm.


	6. Take what you need. (Warcross)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Abeni works at a flower shop, and Emika needs a bouquet.
> 
> Tags: Alternative Universe - Flower Shop, Alternative Universe - College/University

Abeni mostly enjoyed her job as florist, but when Valentine's Day was just around the corner, it became a chore. 

She was finishing up an arrangement of flowers when she heard someone enter the shop. She looked up from her work and recognized the customer immediately—not that she knew many people with rainbow hair, though.

"Hey, Abeni," Emika said, "I know you're probably busy, but could you make something for me?"

"Sure. Take what you need, and I'll arrange something for you. Not roses though—I'm sick of them already."

"I'm not sure what to get," she said. "I don't exactly speak flower."

"It's a good thing that I do, then."

"Could you put something together that means 'fuck you' in flower?" Emika asked.

Abeni laughed. "That's not a typical request, but yes."

"I've only got like twenty dollars though—will that be enough?"

"Since you're my friend, yes. Just give me an address, and I'll deliver it tomorrow."

* * *

The next day, Renoir Thomas received a bouquet of flowers. There was a card attached to it, but the only message was the list of flowers and their meanings: orange lilies, for hatred; yellow carnations, for disappointment; meadowsweet, for uselessness; geraniums, for stupidity; and foxglove, for insincerity.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bouquet is courtesy of [this infamous tumblr post.](https://cupidsbower.tumblr.com/post/145960730310/flower-shop-au)


	7. I heard enough, this ends now. (Wildcard)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tremaine's teammates argue a lot, and he's sick of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Post-canon.
> 
> If you don't remember who Darren is (I don't blame you), he's the Demon Brigade's Shield.

Darren and Max were arguing about something stupid. Well, that's what Tremaine assumed, since every other one of their arguments were because of something unsubstantial. Usually, he could tolerate them by going to a different room and putting on some music, but they were being loud and his head was starting to hurt from any sort of noise.

"I've heard _enough_ ," Tremaine said. "This ends, now."

"You're taking his side?" Max asked.

"I'm not taking anyone's side—I don't even know what you two are talking about. I'm just telling you guys to shut up," he said. "You two are giving me a headache. Can't be courteous to the guy who got shot in the head?"

"How did that even happen?" Darren asked.

"You know, I'm sure I _could_ relive that memory, but I'd rather not."

"Right. Sorry," Darren muttered.

"You could always take a nap," Max suggested.

"I will. Don't wake me."

Tremaine headed upstairs and went to his room, where most of his things were packed into luggage. He climbed into his bed and realized that it'd be one of the last times he'd be in it. In a few days, he'd be in London with Roshan. All Tremaine had to do was endure those arguments for a little while, then never again.

The thought made him smile.

"Soon," he said to himself, before falling asleep.


	8. No worries, we still have time. (Wildcard, Tremaine/Roshan)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They head back to London and visit someone they know.
> 
> Tags: Alcohol, Racing, Bets & Wagers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Post-canon.
> 
> My Tremaine headcanon is that he's blond, and my facecanon for Jesse is Dudley O'Shaughnessy.
> 
> There's a little bit of banter between Tremaine and Roshan that's a bit nsfw but not really. Here's a warning just so it doesn't completely blindside you.

Jesse was sitting at the end of the bar, drinking a pint and playing a game on their phone, when the bartender interrupted them.

"Two guys are looking for you," she said. "Specifically called for your name."

"What do they look like?" they asked.

"One's tall and has brown, curly hair. Other one's blond and a bit shorter than him. Their faces were covered, but they don't look like trouble," she answered. "Oh, and they seemed close to each other, if that helps."

Jesse took a moment to think, before they finally realized who the two people could've been. _Roshan and Tremaine_. "Send them over," they said. 

The bartender nodded. As she left to fetch the two, Jesse put their phone away and took a swig from their beer.  _Here we go._

A moment later, the couple arrived and sat down next to Jesse—Roshan was directly at their left, wearing a red scarf that covered the lower half of their face, while Tremaine was one seat over and had a black face mask on. 

"You know, I expected both of you to come back to England, but not _together_ ," Jesse said, turning to face them. "Last time I saw you, you weren't exactly friendly to each other."

As he pulled his mask off, Tremaine said, "We talked and figured it out."

Roshan took off his scarf, looked at him, and said, "I would've preferred that you talked before you ended up in a hospital bed, though."

"Why was he in the hospital?" they asked.

"Got shot in the head," Tremaine said, with such nonchalance that Jesse thought he might have been joking—but from the grimace on Roshan's face, they knew he wasn't.

"That's what happens when you fuck with mercenaries," they muttered. "Anyway, what are you two doing here? I'm sure there's better places to be than a pub."

"Well, we were heading out to dinner with someone, but Roshan wanted to stop by," Tremaine said.

Jesse looked at Roshan and said, "Thought someone like you would know better than to keep someone waiting."

"No worries. We still have time," he replied.

They narrowed their eyes. "For what?"

He smiled at them and said, "A race, of course."

"You're sure about that?" they asked, then took a sip of their beer. "As far as I know, you haven't raced in years."

Roshan shrugged. "Mario Kart's not that different from drones. I'll be able to keep up." 

"All right, I'll race on two conditions. One, Tremaine has to join so I can kick his ass for not listening to me. Two, you're gonna have to put money on it," they said.

"I beat Roshan in a race before," Tremaine said. "I can handle it."

"That was once, and it was because you and Hammie were targetting me the entire time," Roshan said. "Absolutely vicious."

"That was vicious? You ignored me for  _three weeks_ afterward," Tremaine muttered.

"You could survive using your right hand for eighteen years, but three weeks without mine and suddenly you're dying," he said. "Can't imagine how you survived the next year and a half."

"I don't need to know this, nor do I want to," Jesse said.

Roshan laughed. "Fine, I'll stop. How much are we betting?"

"I'm putting a thousand on me, you can do the same for yourself, or split it between you and Tremaine," they said. "Or place it all on him, if you want to give me money."

Roshan noticed the scowl on his boyfriend's face, so he leaned toward him and whispered, "Hey, if you lose, it'll be fine. But if you win, you'll get to knock Jesse down a peg or two. So do your best, okay love?"

Tremaine smiled at the endearment. "Okay," he whispered back. "But don't bet all on me. I can't handle that much pressure."

Roshan turned to face Jesse and said, "Five hundred on me and five hundred on him."

"All right," Jesse said, finishing their pint. They got up from their barstool, put on their backpack, and told them to follow as they left the bar.

* * *

The three of them ended up in a previously abandoned warehouse. Nowadays, it appeared to be a racetrack of sorts, with numerous drones zipping around in streaks of neon light. In the corner, Roshan was teaching Tremaine the basics of how to operate a drone.

He took Tremaine's hand and laid it flat. "Doing this makes you accelerate," he said, pressing down on Tremaine's index finger. "And going up slows you down. Do this to go right"—he took his hand and made it tilt in said direction—"and the other way to go left. How sharply you turn depends on how much you tilt your hand."

"All about hand gestures," Tremaine muttered. "This is going to be awful."

"I know, it'll be difficult with that injury of yours," Roshan said. "What if I knocked Jesse out of the sky for you? There's no rule against it."

"You're going to be a blue shell?"

"Something like that. What do you say?" he asked.

"Sounds like a plan to me," Tremaine said.

* * *

Tremaine learned that Jesse was the type that liked to stay in first place the entire time. Their green drone was always ahead of his black one, while Roshan's red drone was constantly trailing Jesse. From his view, he could tell that Jesse took sharp corners compared to Roshan's wider ones. If Roshan were to accelerate just when Jesse was about to turn, it would make them crash—and that's exactly what he did at the last lap.

While they attempted to right their drone and pick up speed again, Tremaine flew past them and finished the race. When Jesse realized what happened, they glared at Roshan, then took out a thousand pounds from their backpack and held it out to Tremaine. 

"Keep your money," Tremaine said. "Seeing you glower is the best prize I could've won."

"Suit yourself," they said, putting the cash away.

"Come on, we should head to dinner," Roshan said. "See you later, Jesse."

"Bye," Tremaine said, waving at them as he and Roshan left the warehouse.

"Remember to stay out of trouble."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no idea how drone racing works so I didn't write it. And maybe because it was 11:30 pm.
> 
> Also the 'three weeks' thing is based off [this tumblr post](https://warcrossheadcanons.tumblr.com/post/178229321242)


	9. I know you do. (Wildcard, Asher/Hammie)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asher and Hammie tell each other about some news they heard.
> 
> Tags: Bets & Wagers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Post-canon.

Every day, Asher and Hammie video called each other.

"Hey Ash," she greeted. "How've you been?"

"Same as ever," he replied. "It's lonely here. I miss you."

"I know you do," she said. "I'll come by soon, I promise."

"So, anything new with you?"

"Not with me, but there's something new with Tremaine," she said.

"What would that be?"

"He said he wanted to propose to Roshan," she answered, "but he was worried that he might be rushing things."

"You're kidding."

"Nope. I told him he should go for it," she said. "What do you think?"

"I think Roshan might beat him to it," he said. "The other day, he said he was going to propose on Tremaine's birthday. He also said to keep it a secret, so that's why I didn't tell you."

"That's in a few days, isn't it?" she asked.

"You're planning something, aren't you."

"We should go visit them in London! It'll be like a reunion!"

"Maybe we should wait until one of them actually asks the question? We'll just end up tipping them off if we randomly visit," he said.

She pouted. "Fine. Tremaine's gonna ask first, though."

"You want to bet on it?"

"Absolutely."

"Okay, if you're right, I'll owe you a ring. If I'm right, then you owe me one," he said.

Her face lit up. "Deal," she said. "Now we wait."

Asher nodded. "Now we wait," he repeated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If I write part 2 of this, it would be #18 (You should have seen it), #20 (I hope you have a speech prepared), or #31 (I've waited so long for this). 
> 
> Probably will be #20 because I cannot think of any other situations that I'd write for it.


	10. You shouldn't have come here. (Wildcard)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tags: Guns

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Canon-compliant.
> 
> Takes place right before The Scene.

The second that Tremaine tripped over that plant, he knew he was fucked. He tried to run for the panic room, but they were too fast—and now, he was a captive. He knew he was still Linked and online, when he received a message from Emika about a half hour ago— **"Hey, are you still in for tonight?** "—but he couldn't answer. He wanted to tell her to stay away, to warn her,  _anything_ , but the gag in his mouth made it impossible for the NeuroLink to transcribe what he was saying.

Tremaine thought it was sort of funny—in a fucked up way—that for the second time, there was someone that could save him from the mess he got himself into, but all he wanted was for them to go away.

Someone entered the room he was being held in—a silver-haired girl wearing black lipstick that he recognized as Jax. Emika said that she was the one that saved her from two assassins in Shinjuku.

And now, she was probably going to be the one that would kill him.

"You shouldn't have come here," Jax said. "But what I'm not sure what else I expected. The second you found out about this place from your friend, you just had to see what was inside."

 _It was you_.  _You're the one that told Jesse about the institute_.

Jax knelt down so that her face was level with his. Her gaze was cold and hardened. "You realize what my job is, right? You realize what I have to do to you?"

"Don't," he pleaded, but the sound only came out as a muffled cry.

"You don't know how to quit while you're ahead, so I'm going to make you. I'm putting you out of commission so you won't mess with shit that you're not involved in anymore."

_Is that your fancy way of saying you're going to kill me?_

There was a brief silence, then she continued. "Lots of people think they'll die if they get shot in the head. I bet you're one of them. Right?"

He nodded. It felt like signing his death warrant.

"It's because you don't know how to use this," she said, taking out her gun. If he wasn't already terrified by the sight of the weapon (he was), then he would've been when she placed the barrel against his forehead. He saw that her finger wasn't on the trigger, only making him marginally less scared—it'd take less than a second for her to pull it—but he'd like to believe she was trying to prove a point. She lowered her voice to a whisper. "If I were to shoot right _here_ , you could survive."

Jax put her gun away, leaning closer so that her face was mere centimeters away from his, and muttered, "You're lucky that you're Emika's friend, Tremaine. Most of the time, I shoot to kill—but this isn't most times. So, when I put a bullet in your head, you're going to be thankful that you got out of here alive, and you're going to listen when I say that you should stop interfering. Because if you don't, and I see you, you'll be dead before you hit the ground."

She stood up and walked behind him, then pulled him onto his feet with such force that he cried out in pain. "Walk," she commanded. He did his best to oblige, but it apparently wasn't enough, as she continually shoved him forward by his shoulders.

Eventually, they ended up standing before a glass room, where two different people entered. Jax pushed down hard, sending Tremaine to his knees.

He couldn't stop shaking.

He heard Jax explaining to the two about how she found him, and told them that he knew where the panic room was. A man's voice replied, saying that he must've been studying the blueprints of the institute. Jax suggested that he was scouting out the place for someone else. Then, she said, "He's not here alone."

At the sound of that, Tremaine shook his head back and forth. He looked up, meeting the person that the male voice belonged to. The person looked almost like Hideo, but not quite— _Sasuke_ , he realized. Hideo's brother.  _Zero_.

He was vaguely aware of the fact his gag had been removed by Jax, and he could barely make out what Zero was asking him. Tremaine didn't know how to respond, so he didn't say anything. He heard Jax sigh, and his eyes widened when he saw Zero move toward him, but Jax held her hand up.

He felt Jax's other hand leave his shoulder, and he saw her pull out her gun again—but this time, she pulled back the safety. She aimed at him, and before he could even react, she fired.

* * *

When Tremaine was conscious, he was lying in a hospital bed, attached to numerous wires that were probably the only thing keeping him alive right now. From the corner of his vision, through the window, he saw several people from various teams waiting outside of his room. Notably, there was someone with a head full of dark curls shouting at a doctor.

He closed his eyes and must've ended up falling asleep, because when he opened them again, it seemed that everyone had gone home. But Tremaine didn't care about the people that had left—he cared about the only person that had stayed, who was sitting at his bedside.

Roshan.


	11. You think this troubles me? (Warcross)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Roshan needs someone to be his date to a party. Jena volunteers her roommate for him.
> 
> Connects to prompt #4.
> 
> Tags: Alternative Universe - College/University

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll eventually make this college AU its own thing. Maybe.

After his classes were done for the day, Tremaine went downtown to the Phoenix. When he went inside, he saw that Jena was sitting at a bar table talking to Roshan, who had his back facing away from. Jena motioned for Tremaine to come over, causing Roshan to turn around and smile at Tremaine when he saw him.

Once Tremaine made his way over to them, he set his backpack on the floor and took a seat next to Jena.

"Okay, Roshan," Jena said. "Say what you just told me, but to Tremaine."

"He _just_ finished listening to a bunch of people talk for hours," Roshan said.

"It's fine," Tremaine said. "Tell me."

"My parents are throwing a party for Christmas, and they expect me to be there," Roshan said.

"You don't like parties?"

"At my family's parties, people only talk to me just to flirt and try to win my hand," he said. "But if I have someone to pretend to be my date, they'll leave me alone."

"I hear Tremaine doesn't have any plans for Christmas," Jena said, nudging said person. "And he likes parties."

Tremaine glared at her.  _Stop volunteering for me_.

Roshan gave him a pleading look. "If it troubles you—"

"You think this troubles me?" he asked.

"I suppose it doesn't," Roshan said, smiling. "I have to get back to work now, but I'll tell you the details later."

"Sounds good," Tremaine replied. When Roshan left their table, Tremaine turned toward Jena. "Stop doing things for me."

She held up her hands in defense. "I'm just trying to help," she said. "Besides, I won't be able to interfere when you're with Roshan's family."

"A miracle, truly."

"Though, his family is very careful about maintaining their image," she said. "If you think I'm controlling, just wait until you meet them."

"Have  _you_ met them?"

"Roshan talks about them sometimes," she replied. "I could tell you more about them, but I don't think it's in my place to do so."

"Fair enough," he said. "When does his shift end, anyway?"

"About half an hour," she said.

Tremaine pulled out a notebook from his backpack. "Just enough time to study."

The livid look on Jena's face was absolutely priceless.


	12. But I will never forget! (Wildcard, Tremaine/Roshan)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Roshan brings Tremaine to a gathering (read: party) and makes sure that his boyfriend gets the respect he deserves.
> 
> Contains mention of Tremaine's past. Since tagging the fic would spoil Wildcard, I'll put warnings in end notes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Post-canon.

Roshan and Tremaine were sitting in the backseat of a car, being driven to the Ahmadi estate. Tremaine laid  his head on Roshan's shoulder, his fingers intertwined with his boyfriend's. His other hand lay on his thigh, where his fingers were drumming in an erratic rhythm.

Roshan noticed his fidgeting and asked, "Are you nervous?"

"A little," Tremaine replied. "I assume your dad's going to be there?"

"If you're worried because of what he said, I'll make sure to talk to him." 

"I forgive him," he said. "I'm clean now, anyway."

Roshan kissed his head then said, "Even if you weren't, it doesn't mean he should've disrespected you."

"If you want to defend my honor, then go for it," he said, smiling. "I'm just saying that you don't have to. Mainly because then I'll be left alone and have to talk to a bunch of strangers."

"Don't worry," Roshan said. "If they talk to you, it'll probably be about Warcross. But if you really don't like them, just hang out with Bhediya. She scares a lot of them off, even though she's basically a big puppy."

"I think I'll do that."

* * *

When they arrived, Roshan's mother was the first person to greet them.

"Tremaine!" She wrapped her arms around him. "I didn't know you were coming! How have you been?"

"Good," he answered, glancing at his boyfriend because  _she gives really tight hugs apparently, please help._

"You're going to squeeze the life out of him," Roshan said.

She let go. "Sorry, love. I trust my son's been treating you well?"

"Yes, he's been quite the gentleman," he answered, smiling.

"I'm glad to hear that," she said.

"Mother, do you know where father happens to be?" Roshan asked.

"I believe he's upstairs, dear," she said. "I have to go talk to the other guests now, but I hope you enjoy the party!"

When she left, Tremaine asked, "You're going to talk to him?"

Roshan nodded.

"I'll go find your dog then."

* * *

Once Roshan spotted who he was looking for, he said, "Father."

"Roshan, welcome back. How was Tokyo?"

"It was nice. I fell in love with someone again."

"That's lovely," his father said. "Are they here?"

"Yes, but don't worry. You've already met him before."

"Tremaine? The one that cheated on you?" he asked.

"He didn't really cheat," Roshan said. "The real reason he broke up with me was because of what you said."

His father gave him a blank look. "What did I say?"

"You said that you expected he would end up as an addict. That 'it was only a matter of time before he followed his mother's example'—do you remember now?"

"I remember," he murmured.

"Do you know what your words meant to him, once he heard that? He thought that he didn't deserve me. He thought that it was better for him to ruin his own happiness, just so that I wouldn't be 'stuck' with him. He was ashamed of himself, after hearing what you had to say about him."

His father opened his mouth to speak, but Roshan interrupted him. "Tremaine has forgiven you, so I shall too. But I will never forget what you did to him."

"I'm sorry," his father said.

"Tremaine's the one that deserves an apology."

"Of course," he said. "Where may I find him?"

"With our wolf."

* * *

Tremaine was sitting on the couch with Bhediya lying across his lap, when Roshan's father walked up to him.

"Mr. Ahmadi."

"Tremaine," he greeted in return. "I would like to apologize for my previous statements about you."

"It's fine—"

"No, it's not," he said, taking a seat next to Tremaine. "I insulted you and your mother. I was more concerned about the family name than my son's happiness. I made you believe many horrible things about yourself, all because I was ignorant about addiction. You claim that it's fine, but how can it be fine for somebody to do something like that? The answer is, it's not."

Mr. Ahmadi continued. "I understand that you forgive me, and that's fine. But if someone apologizes for wronging you, never say that it's fine. Accept their apology if you wish, but saying 'it's fine' makes them believe they can wrong you again. Don't let people look down upon you. You deserve respect."

"Thank you," Tremaine said. "I appreciate it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mentions drug abuse/addiction/etc.


	13. Who could do this? (Wildcard, Tremaine/Roshan)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They find a cat.
> 
> Tags: Cats

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Post-canon.
> 
> Warning: a cat is mistreated at the beginning.

Roshan and Tremaine were walking down the sidewalk when they saw a car speed past them, with an orange-and-white object being thrown from one of its windows. The object turned out to be a cat, who meowed loudly as it landed in the middle of the road.

After briefly checking to see if there were any more cars around, Tremaine rushed toward the cat and crouched down to check on it. "Who could do this? You poor thing," he murmured.

Roshan went to his side and asked, "What do we do?"

"Give me your jacket so I can carry it."

Roshan obliged, and Tremaine carefully bundled the fabric around the animal. Surprisingly, it didn't writhe or struggle—all it did was meow as he carried it in his arms. They stood back up and began making their way to the nearest animal hospital.

* * *

Once they delivered the cat to the veterinarian, they sat in the waiting room.

"Hey," Tremaine said. "Could we keep the cat?"

Roshan glanced at him. "I have no idea how to take care of one, and I don't think you do either."

"I've taken care of strays..."

"That's not exactly the same," he muttered.

"Please?"

Roshan sighed. "I have a feeling I'm not going to win this."

"Is that a yes?"

"It's a, 'you've already fallen in love with that cat and it'll crush you if I say no'."

"Sounds like a yes to me," Tremaine said. "Anyway, do you think 'Pumpkin' is a good name?"

"I thought you'd choose a fruit. Though, 'Pumpkin' sounds a lot better than 'Orange'."

Tremaine laughed. "Pumpkin it is, then."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [I've had this headcanon for a little while...](https://warcrossheadcanons.tumblr.com/post/178931371008)


	14. Try harder, next time. (Warcross)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Someone comes to claim Emika's bounty.
> 
> Tags: Alternative Universe - Magic, Violence

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AU is semi-inspired by The Young Elites, Grishaverse, and the Worm web-serial (though this fic only has some Grishaverse inspirations)
> 
> This fic is more like an excerpt from a magic AU I have but I haven't been able to figure out how to get up to this point.

Emika was exhausted. The bounty hunter was too fast for her and kept dodging all of her attacks.

She used the last of her energy to summon a fireball—one so large that there was no way it could miss—and shot it at her hunter. As the flames came barreling toward him, he reached his hand out. Emika thought he might've been trying to brace himself in a way, but she saw the fireball was moving slower until it eventually froze midair in front of its target.

"Try harder, next time," the hunter said, then he made the flames dissipate.

Emika knew that voice. It belonged to someone she once called a teammate, but ended up being someone she tried to hunt down—and now, she was the one being hunted. It was Renoir Thomas.

Why did she decide to travel alone? How naive was she, thinking that she'd be safe here? Thinking that no one would attack her?

Ren walked toward her, crouched down to her level, unsheathed a white-bladed knife and held it above her neck. "Let's see if a  _phénix_ can really come back from the dead if I kill you with this," he said, smiling.

Before he could do anything, someone shot an arrow through his neck and killed him. Emika shoved his body away so that Ren wouldn't land on her, and she slowly got back on her feet. At the top of the hill to her right, she saw the archer drop their shroud of darkness, revealing them to be Tremaine. 

She watched him put away his bow and drop down to where she was, then asked, "You followed me?"

"I promised Roshan I'd keep you out of trouble," Tremaine said. Emika noted that, as he made his way over to her, he deliberately chose to step over Ren rather than go around.

"What do we do with him?" Emika asked, glancing at the body.

"I'll throw him into the sea. It'll be a long time before he's able to catch up to us," Tremaine said. "Just have to tie him to a few weights."

"Wait, what?"

Tremaine mistook her reaction as a request to elaborate. "He'll be dead for a few days, and when he resurrects, he'll be at the bottom of the sea. He'll drown a couple times before he makes it back up to the surface. Every time he dies, it'll buy us another week."

Emika shook her head. "That's cruel."

"You saw that smile of his, peach. He would've done worse to you," he said.

"Actually, I think he might've just killed me," she said. "That knife he had looked... weird."

Tremaine went over to Ren, knelt down, and took the knife. Curiously, he took off one of Ren's gloves and pressed the flat side of the blade to the palm. The flesh burned, but there was no smell.

"Slayer weapons are always so interesting," he murmured, holding the knife up to the light. "What kind of metal is this, even? Or maybe it's coated in something? Whatever it is, if it can make a phoenix burn, then it'd surely be able to slay one." He plunged the blade into Ren's chest. The body dispersed into white shadows, where it left behind only armor and equipment. Tremaine began searching through Ren's gear, grabbed something, and threw it at Emika.

She caught the object and realized it was Ren's slayer badge. "You want me to confirm the kill?"

"I doubt many slayers will come after you when they see that Ren's dead," he said. Once he finished looting, he stood back up. "So, plan on continuing this trip of yours? Those firebirds are worried about you."

"No," Emika answered. "I found what I needed. Let's go."

Tremaine put a veil of darkness over them, and they headed back to town.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Grishaverse inspiration - darkness manipulation
> 
> The Young Elites and Worm inspirations have to do with powers of other characters.
> 
> Ren's knife is sorta inspired by Gáe Buidhe because of its effect (creates unhealable wounds).


	15. Some people call this wisdom. (Warcross)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tags: Alternative Universe - Magic

When they went back to town, Tremaine and Emika saw a priestess that was shouting at a crowd of people. "The gods are displeased! They have cursed us, sending these dangerous beasts of man! We must kill them all, before they kill us!"

"Some people call this wisdom," Tremaine murmured, as the two of them walked past. Emika was thankful for the veils that he had conjured, for it hid her wings and his horns.

They headed to a tavern called Crossroads—it was a neutral territory where any person, regardless of powers (or lack thereof), were welcome to enter. Even slayers were welcome, though their business had more so to do with the assassination lottery that hung on the back wall of the tavern. Emika grimaced when she saw her own name at the top of the list, but Tremaine pointed out that just a few names below was "Renoir" and his bounty of a substantial amount of notes.

Once he unveiled the both of them, Emika took out Ren's badge and set it before the Bounty Commissioner—a woman that had short silver hair. The commissioner inspected the badge, then said, "Not enough proof that he's gone."

Tremaine unsheathed Ren's knife and placed it on the table. "This was his weapon," he said.

"Was he killed with it?" Emika nodded. The commissioner shook her head. "Then he's not dead. This knife"—she picked it up and held it to the light—"is enchanted. If the blade touches flesh, it burns. If you stab someone with it, they turn to shadows. It'd usually kill a phoenix, but Ren's a lot more than that."

"Of course he has more classifications," he muttered. "So, how do you know so much about that blade?"

"It was mine," she said. "We used to work together, in a way. I suppose Ren thought my knife was worth more than my trust, so he took it and tried to slay me."

"If wasn't killed by the enchantment, then what happens to him?" Emika asked.

"The shadows need time to form back into the shape of a body. It'll start with the vitals, and he'll wake up at some point, but he'll be blind." she said. "During that time, he'll be extremely vulnerable. Powerless. It'd be easy for anyone to kill him."

"So that's when we strike," Tremaine said.

"Exactly," the commissioner said. "Now go find him."


	16. I thought you had forgotten. (Warcross, Tremaine/Roshan)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tags: Sirens

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is 100% an excuse to force myself to actually write this siren/mermaid au I have instead of keeping the idea in my head for the past.... five months.

Roshan sat at the end of the dock, his legs hanging over the edge with his feet in the water, gazing at the endless stretch of ocean. When he heard footsteps coming from behind, he turned around and smiled when he saw that it was his boyfriend.

Tremaine sat down to Roshan's left and asked, "You wanted to meet here?"

"Yeah. Just like old times," Roshan said. "But back then, you were in the water."

"I thought you had forgotten," Tremaine murmured.

"Well, I first thought that you were an imaginary friend or something. But when I told my sister about you, she said she saw you too—the siren with the silver tail," Roshan said. "Though, she kept her distance."

"That was smart of her. Can't drown if you don't hear the siren's song. Or if you're immune to it, like you were."

"I liked it when you sang," Roshan said, "but then you stopped, and eventually you just didn't show up anymore."

"Other sirens started following where I went. I didn't want to lead them to you," he said.

"Did they ever stop?"

Tremaine shook his head. "They wouldn't leave me alone, so I went where they couldn't follow."

"Land," Roshan said.

Tremaine nodded. "I wanted to look for you, but I didn't even know how to walk. It took so long to learn how to move, speak, read and write—by then, years had passed. But then the NeuroLink came out, and it made things so much easier to do," he said. "One day, I saw you again—you were playing Warcross, and your livestream was on the front page. I didn't know how the game really worked then, but all I remembered was that you were doing great, and that your chat said you were bound to become a professional."

"Is that why you started playing?"

"That, and the fact I needed to get reliable income," he said. "I'm good at hunting bounties, but so are other people. And once they get that bounty first, you have to start your search all over again. But Warcross? As long as you're good at the game, you'll make money. The reason I started playing professionally, though, was so that I could see you again."

"And now we're here." After a while, Roshan asked, "Did you ever miss the ocean?"

"Not as much as I missed you," he replied.

"Don't miss your tail, or your claws, or your unbelievably flowy hair?"

Tremaine laughed at that. "Do you?"

"Maybe."

"If that's so..." Tremaine pushed himself off the edge of the dock and dove into the water. Roshan peered at the unnatural foam of bubbles that emerged where Tremaine went. A moment later, a head of platinum blond hair popped up from the surface, along with a silver-scaled tail that trailed behind him. "How do I look?" he asked, looking up at his boyfriend.

Roshan leaned down and kissed him, then said, "Beautiful as always, love."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm debating on whether I should set this in its own AU with its own plot, or if it should generally be like the canon with a couple things changed.
> 
> Anyway, give me feedback on any of the chapters if you please :)


	17. This is gonna be so much fun! (Warcross, BG Romaine)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warcross, except it's VRChat.
> 
> [Inspired by this video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okrvBlAbO80&feature=youtu.be&t=18m40s) (warning: loud)
> 
> Tags: Hide and Seek

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's like the tiniest Wildcard spoiler in here but it's such an insignificant detail that it doesn't matter.
> 
> Also this fic contains Tremaine/Roshan but it's not the central focus.

There were twelve players in the game lobby. The majority of them were Phoenix Riders, as they were the hosts.

Asher was setting up the game, while Hammie was playing speed chess with Jena. The couple were wearing the same red letterman style jackets, with a golden phoenix embroidered where the letter would be. Jena's outfit was a stark contrast; she was wearing a black duster coat with an ascot tie that was affixed with a green jewel.

Nearby, Roshan was sitting cross-legged on the ground, also wearing a jacket, but it was white and had the insignia of a silver hooded demon on it. His team jacket was instead being worn by Tremaine, who had lain on the ground—one leg bent, the other laid straight—with his head in Roshan's lap. The two were wrapped up in their own world, completely oblivious to everything else that was happening around them (except for the sounds of frustration coming from Jena as she kept losing, which they laughed at).

The rest of the players—Shahira, Ivo, Yuebin, Abeni, Penn, Ziggy, and Emika—were standing and chatting with one another.

"All right, everyone," Asher said, "game's ready to start."

"What will we be playing?" Yuebin asked.

"Hide and seek," Abeni replied. "It's really fun. It can get very competitive sometimes."

"I've never played in-game," Ziggy said. "How does it work?"

Hammie cut in. "This space is the play area," she said, gesturing toward the large grassy plains in front of them. She headed over to a panel of buttons and pushed one labeled "normal". A moment afterward, the plains were flooded with copies of the players' avatars. "We're gonna have to look through that."

"That's a lot of people," Shahira said, dismayed. 

"Set it to hard. I know some people here like a challenge," Asher said, glancing over at the Demon Brigade members.

She obliged, and an even more densely packed sea of avatars were spawned in. Shahira sighed at the sight. "There's going to be only one hider per round. Everyone else is going to seek, and they win by grabbing the hider's artifact. Hider gets a head start, of course."

"How long?" Tremaine asked, getting up from the floor.

"Fifteen seconds," she replied.

"Oh, that's plenty of time," he said. "How does the hider get chosen?"

Roshan could tell that there was, most definitely, something up Tremaine's sleeve. "I think someone wants to volunteer."

"If I may," he said, with a slight smile.

"See that button that says 'hider' on it? Once you press it, that's when your fifteen seconds start," Hammie said. "Hider wins if no one gets their artifact within five minutes."

"This is gonna be so much fun," Tremaine said, then hit the button.

* * *

**3:49 REMAINING  
**   
The seekers had ended up forming small groups for their search. Roshan's group consisted of only three people: himself, Abeni, and Penn. He didn't know the Titan very well—at least personally—but he was aware of her skill, and how quickly she climbed the international leaderboard. If not for Emika hacking into the championships, Abeni could've definitely the number one pick. As for Penn, Roshan knew him a bit better—he'd been playing professionally for about two years, and they'd occasionally duo-queue in games together.

"So, what do you think his plan is?" Abeni asked. "Think he'll play fair?"

"Depends on what you think 'fair' means," Roshan said. "He'll play by the rules, but of course, there's not many rules to hide and seek."

"We'll just have to see which cards he'll play," Penn said.

* * *

**2:07 REMAINING**

"There he is!" Ziggy shouted. She lunged toward him, reaching for the glowing gem above his head. 

"I don't think so," Tremaine said, as he dodged her attack. "You might be a fast Thief, but so am I."

At that moment, everyone within his vicinity had their playfield obscured by a mostly black screen, except for the Demon Brigade logo in the center. It was accompanied by a low quality, booming music track, that could be recognized as the intro music for every Demon Brigade vlog. The sudden sound caused several players to yell out, and by the time the effect was over, Tremaine was gone.

"He escaped," Ziggy said, dejected. "How'd he manage to get a **Dazzle** power-up? Especially one like _that_?"

"There's no rule against using it," Yuebin said. "We'll just have to find him again."

* * *

**1:14 REMAINING**  
  
"I think he's over here," Shahira said over comms, setting a waypoint on the map.

Roshan looked at the sky, heading toward the beacon of light that marked the location. "Tremaine didn't go very far," he murmured.

From a distance, he watched Tremaine's avatar move around in the sea of players, dancing just out of everyone's reach. When Roshan made his way over, he heard Tremaine speaking to the seekers.

"Okay, I won't do it again," Tremaine said, and though it was subtle, Roshan could see him fiddling with something in his hand. "I'm not a—"  
  
"Watch out!" Roshan shouted, as he quickly turned away. Tremaine used a second **Dazzle** , disorienting those that were unable to react to the warning (notably Penn, who shouted  _"kurwa!"_ at the noise). Those that  _had_ managed to react in time quickly pointed out the nimbly moving avatar in the crowd and went after him.

"Don't lose track of him," Abeni said. "We've only got about forty seconds."

"He's too fast," Ivo said. "I can barely keep up, let alone catch him."

"I could always try something," Emika said. 

Shahira glanced at her. "What's your plan?"

"He's not the only one that has power-ups," she said. "From what I have... someone could use **Speed Burst** , hit him with either **Icicle** or **Lightning** , then take his artifact."

"Don't happen to have **Artifact King**?" Hammie asked. 

"A what?" Yuebin asked.

"A power-up that costs about a million notes. It teleports the enemy's artifact to you if it's within line of sight," Emika explained. "And no, I don't have one."

"I don't think a game of hide and seek is worth spending that much on, regardless," Abeni said. "Thirty seconds left."

"Pass me the speed," Roshan said. "I wouldn't try using the others. I bet he has a plan against those."

Emika tossed the bright yellow orb at him, which he caught. "What do you think he wouldn't be prepared for?" she asked.

"We could always try to sneak up on him?" Hammie suggested. "I know I've caught plenty of people off guard just by flanking around them, though considering this map is a flat field, it'd be a bit difficult."

"This might help, then," Emika said, giving Roshan another power-up. The background of the orb was black and covered in flecks of white—similar to a night sky—and it was decorated with a spiral of blues and greens. 

" **Shadow**? Don't see those in games very often. Mainly because Hammie probably takes them all," Roshan said. 

"There's not much reason for a Shield to be invisible for five seconds," Hammie said. "I don't think Tremaine would prepare for that. It might be exactly what we need to win."

"Well, here's to praying that he doesn't have a third **Dazzle**." Roshan used Speed Burst and ran at Tremaine, who was too busy dodging the other seekers' attacks to notice him. As he got closer to the scene, he used Shadow before Tremaine could turn and see him.

The other seekers' reactions to Roshan disappearing must've tipped Tremaine off, because he brought out a power-up from his inventory: a cracked, yellow orb that glowed in a golden aura. Roshan recognized it as **Immortality** ; it would make Tremaine immune to any power-up effects for five seconds. Even **Artifact King** would be powerless. It would've been the right play to make, had they stuck to Emika's plan.

What a  _shame_ that they hadn't.  
  
Right as Tremaine used his power-up, he was tackled to the ground by Roshan. In the brief moment of his confusion, Roshan reached out and grabbed the artifact above his head. Tremaine could only stare as the copied avatars around them faded away. He glanced at the timer and grimaced when he saw that it stopped at  **0:08 REMAINING**.

"Well," Tremaine said, tilting his head back to look up at Roshan, "this wasn't a total loss."

"Oh, really? How so?"

"I mean, you're on top of me. I consider that a win," he said, smiling.

"I hate to interrupt, but if you guys could not flirt on the comms, that'd be great," Jena said. "Go link with each other or something."

Tremaine laughed and said, "Aye, captain." He stood up, then offered his hand as leverage to Roshan.

Though it wouldn't actually provide any help, Roshan took it anyway. "So, up for another game?"

"I don't know. My captain gave me orders, after all," Tremaine replied. "I think she'd want me to follow them."

Roshan smiled and said, "I'll make sure you stay to it."

Both of their avatars logged out of the game, leaving the rest of the players to guess what they planned on doing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jena's dressed like Lady Maria of the Astral Clocktower if you didn't catch that.
> 
> The tiny detail was that Abeni's a Titan in Wildcard, but in Warcross she's a Cloud Knight.


	18. I'll tell you, but you're not gonna like it. (Warcross, Tremaine/Roshan)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Someone forgot an umbrella.
> 
> Tags: Alternative Universe - College/University

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> little bit of chatfic
> 
> They're not together at *this* point in the story but eventually.... /shrug

Tremaine was supposed to meet Roshan at the library fifteen minutes ago. He had never been late before, so Roshan had no idea what was holding him up. He decided to text him. 

**R: not coming?**

_T: ik im late srry_

**R: where are you?**

_T: uhh_

_T: i'll tell you but you're not gonna like it_

**R: Try me.**

_T: ok so i was going to the library but then it started RAINING and i didnt have an umbrella_

_T: i had to run thru the rain to the nearest building whch was this flower shop and its been raining for the past 20 mins so im jsut sitting here all drenched_

_T: and my phone got messed up a bit so had to dry it and whatever. is it possible for phones to electrocute you? hope not_

_T: oh hey the girl that works here says she knows you. her name's abeni. she says hi_

**R: oh I know where you are then. i'll come get you.**

_T: can you also bring a towel_

**R: no i'm going to make you sit in my car and let you soak everything.**

**R: (yes i'll bring a towel.)**

_T: thanks!!!!_

* * *

Roshan pulled up right in front of the shop's entrance. Tremaine was leaning against the wall, standing under the canopy. When he saw Roshan, he seemed to light up and stand up straighter. Roshan got out of the car with a large towel in hand and held it out to him, but at the same time, Tremaine brought a yellow flower from behind his back and offered it to him.

"Abeni said you like these?"

Roshan smiled and said, "Daffodils are my favorite."

Tremaine wrapped the towel around his shoulders once they had traded items. He got into the car and said, "Sorry that you had to come and get me."

"I'm the one who offered, love." Roshan got into the driver's seat and placed the flower in the cup holder. As he began driving, he asked, "Mind if we went to my flat? It's closer."

"I don't mind," Tremaine said. "Mainly because if Jena saw me like this, she'd never let me live it down."

"You could borrow my clothes, if you want," he offered.

"Okay."

This was definitely not Roshan's excuse to make Tremaine wear something other than a hoodie. He hoped the slight smile on his face didn't give him away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tremaine is literally how I type in Discord chats


	19. You should have seen it. (Warcross)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Continuation of [this chapter.](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16157957/chapters/37856495)
> 
> Tags: Alternative Universe - Flower Shop, Alternative Universe - College/University

Emika stopped by the flower shop during the late afternoon on Valentine's Day. "So, how did Ren react?" she asked.

"You should have seen it," Abeni said. "He was sort of angry and shocked and confused at the exact same time."

Emika beamed. "Happen to get a picture?"

"If you want it, that'll be another twenty dollars," she said. Begrudgingly, Emika gave her the money. Abeni smiled, pulled out her phone, and sent it to her via messages. "I still wonder, what did he do to deserve a fuck-you bouquet?"

"We were grouped together for this project and he didn't do jack shit, so I had to finish it," Emika said. "When the due date came around, Ren said I was the one who didn't do anything, and the professor fucking believed him."

"Ouch," she said. "So, trying to seek revenge?"

"Yep, and this picture might be useful," Emika said. "Well, maybe not, but it's funny to look at anyway."

"I'd say the entertainment value is worth a lot more than what you paid for it," Abeni said.

Emika shrugged. "If you wanted more, you should've asked for more," she said. "I should probably let you work now, so I'll leave you to it."

"Bye, Emika."

She waved a hand in response as she headed toward the exit. "I'm getting this framed!" she shouted, then opened the door and left.

Abeni couldn't help but laugh at that.


	20. Oh please, like this is the worst I have done. (Warcross, Hideo/Emika)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cake > Abiding the law
> 
> Tags: Alternative Universe - College/University

Emika and Hideo were dressed to the nines, attending someone's party. Who's, you might ask? Good question—they didn't know either. All they did know was that there was a grandiose triple-tiered cake and that they were hungry.

"I still can't believe that you and I are crashing a wedding," he said to his girlfriend. 

"Oh please, like this is the worst I have done," Emika replied. "They have an amazing cake and terrible security. I can't help myself."

"I'm not sure why I expected otherwise," he murmured.

"I mean, you didn't have to join me," she said. "You're not exactly the law-breaking type."

"I'm here to make sure _you_ don't break any more laws," he said. "And maybe some food."

She smiled. "Let's get some before someone figures out we're not supposed to be here."

Hideo nodded, then they both made a bee-line for the cake.


	21. I hope you have a speech prepared. (Wildcard, Tremaine/Roshan)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What better way to celebrate a birthday than some games and a ring?
> 
> Related to [this fic.](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16157957/chapters/37948433)
> 
> Tags: Mario Kart, Engagement

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Post-canon.

It was Tremaine's birthday today. Prior, Roshan had sent invitations to the Phoenix Riders, the Demon Brigade, and various criminal friends (read: Emika, Jesse, and Jax) to celebrate the occasion.

As expected, the celebration was being held in a gaming hall with walls that were lined with virtual screens of gameplay. Although there was a myriad of games to play, many people gathered to watch Roshan and Jesse compete in a match of Mario Kart. Tremaine was cheering for his boyfriend—at one point he shouted "kick their ass, babe!"—while the two were driving down Rainbow Road. Roshan was in fourth place while Jesse was in first, but anyone that had played the game with him knew that it was on purpose. As nice as Roshan was, he was an absolute fiend when it came to races, letting his opponents get their hopes up and utterly destroying them right before they can reach the finish line. So when Roshan managed to snipe Jesse with a green shell and ended up winning, it was no surprise to the Phoenix Riders—especially Hammie, who had endured something similar just a few months ago.

She said to her boyfriend, "I still think he's gonna ask Roshan first."

"We'll see," Asher replied.

* * *

They ended up doing karaoke next. Tremaine didn't know many of the songs that were chosen, but the ones he did recognize were "You're Gonna Go Far, Kid" (which Jax definitely chose just to fuck with him) and "Mr. Brightside". Ziggy was about to sing the next song, but Tremaine gestured to hand the microphone over.

"I hope you have a speech prepared," she said, passing it to him.

Tremaine smiled at her. "Before the next song plays, I'd just like to thank everyone for coming. For some of you, we didn't exactly have a great first meeting"—he glanced at Jax and Emika—"but you're here now, so I'd like to think we're friends now. Anyway, this birthday's been pretty great. I usually don't celebrate them since they're just about me getting older, but this day's not just gonna be a celebration for me." He set the mic down and faced his boyfriend, pulled out a ring box from his back pocket, and got down on one knee. "Roshan Ahmadi, brightest star of my sky, will you marry me?"

Roshan opened his mouth and tried to figure out a response, but reconsidered and instead brought out his own ring box as an answer. "You beat me to it," he finally said.

"I'll take that as a yes," Tremaine said, then kissed his fiancé.


	22. Impressive, truly. (Wildcard)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mentions parts of [this chapter](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16157957/chapters/37894862) and happens after [this one](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16157957/chapters/38216441).

Jesse was at the bar again, fingers tapping restlessly against their phone screen to a rhythm game, when a blond man sat next to them.

"Tremaine," they greeted, not looking up from their game. "Been in any trouble lately?"

"Actually, I haven't committed a crime since the last time I saw you," he said.

"Impressive, truly." Once Jesse's game finished, they faced him. "So what brings you here?"

"Just wondering, have you ever been to a wedding?" Tremaine asked.

"No?"

"Great. Come to mine," he said.

Jesse was silent for a moment, then asked, "Who will be there?"

"Not a lot of people. Some you know, some you've only heard of."

"And they're not gonna question who I am?"

"Just say that you're a top Mario Kart player. It's not that far from the truth," he said. "Anyway, does that mean you're coming?"

"You haven't told me the day or time," they muttered.

"Oh, right. Do you know when Roshan's birthday is?"

Jesse held up one hand in a "wait one moment" sort of gesture and used their other hand to type something on their phone. "Exactly a month from today?" they asked, staring at the screen.

"Yeah. It'll be at that same place where we celebrated my birthday," he said. "Maybe you and Roshan could have a rematch."

"If he turns off item boxes," they replied. "Races should be about speed and control, not how well you can sabotage your opponent."

"Are you still mad that I beat you that one time?" Tremaine asked.

"I'm not, nor was I ever, mad about that," they said.

He raised an eyebrow. "Are you _sure_ , Jesse?"

"Do you want me to come or not?"

Tremaine laughed. "I'll see you in a month."

Jesse waved him off once he got up and left.


	23. I know how you love to play games. (Warcross)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Uno ft. Heart Squad
> 
> Tags: Card Games

"Why don't we all play something together?" Hammie suggested. "I promise it'll be fun."

Asher grimaced. "I know how you love to play games," he said. "You can destroy your enemy's morale in a heartbeat. Absolutely ruthless."

Hammie smiled. "I'll go easy."

She invited everyone to link with her, and once they did, they found their avatars sitting at a table together. In the center of the table sat a deck of Uno cards, which were distributed among them once everyone's avatars finished loading in. Going clockwise, the order of players were herself, Asher, Emika, Tremaine, and Roshan.

"Who wants to bet we'll be at each other's throats by the end of this?" Emika asked.

"I assure you, that'll be a given," Tremaine replied.

* * *

It was Asher's turn to play, and Tremaine had one card left. He stared at the cards in his hand, then decided to make a risky move—he played a plus four and changed the color to blue. When the game didn't make Emika immediately draw four cards, Tremaine knew he was in trouble.

"Don't do it peach." But from the devious smile on her face, he knew that her mind was set. She stacked her own plus four and kept the color as blue. "Choke," he said, grumpily adding eight cards to his hand. Emika laughed at the scowl on Tremaine's face, and she could see that Roshan was doing his best to hide his smile as he played his card.

Needless to say, Tremaine didn't win that game.


	24. This is not new, it only feels like it. (Wildcard, Jax/Sasuke)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They look at the stars again.
> 
> Tags: Stargazing

Jax and Sasuke were lying on the roof of an apartment building, staring at the night sky above.

"This is not new," he murmured. "It only feels like it."

"It's been a while since we last did this," she said. "Maybe eight years or so."

"Ah."

"You're doing the exact same thing, too," she murmured.

He tilted his head. "And what would that be?"

"You're looking at me, when you should be looking up," she said, holding a hand out toward the sky.

"I like looking at you."

"You can look at me plenty, but the skies are rarely clear these days. Appreciate the stars before they're gone."

"Stars are already dead, Jax."

"So are you, but you don't see me ignoring you," she said.

Sasuke laughed at that. "True."

And so, the two of them stayed there for a while, pointing at the occasional trails of light that passed by and talking until the sun came up.


	25. You knows this, you know this to be true. (Warcross)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connected to [this fic](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16157957/chapters/38087027) and [this one](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16157957/chapters/38122577).
> 
> Tags: Alternative Universe - Magic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This magic AU is fun to write :D

Tremaine and Emika were standing side-by-side, eyes focused on the map that was sprawled on the table in front of them.

"So peach, any ideas on where to look?" he asked.

"There's always the oracle," Emika suggested, pointing at a location on the map— _Temple Zero_.

"You want to consult the oracle about tracking someone down?"

"We're consulting the  _gods_ ," she corrected. "And we won't just talk about tracking him down. Ren took something from me, and _I want it back_."

Now that piqued his interest. "What'd he take?"

"My fire. It's like everything's disconnected—whenever I try and reach for the energy, it always seems like it's just out of reach," she explained.

"Bastard," he murmured. "Of course Ren's one."

"There's a classification called  _bastard_?"

"It fits, doesn't it? They're the illegitimate wielder of whatever powers they stole," he said.

"I'm starting to think these powers aren't really gifts," she muttered.

"You can tell the oracle that," he said.

"Maybe I will."

* * *

Usually there would be a line to see the oracle—he was a busy man, after all—but when a man with horns and a girl with wings come across your path, you would probably let them pass by without any trouble.

When the oracle stepped out to see them, he was dressed in black robes. "There is something that plagues your minds. What answers do you seek, _fenikkasu_?"

 _Phoenixes_.

"I am not sure that I count as one," Tremaine said.

"Though you lurk in shadow, your hands may still wield flame." Then, the oracle turned toward Emika. "You radiate wrath. Tell me your troubles, so that I may provide guidance."

"A thief has stolen the gods' gift to me," she explained. "And not only that—he is greedy, and tried to take my life as well."

"I have heard of these thieves," the oracle said. "Their abilities come from something beyond the gods. They are corrupted beings that are not quite human nor beast. They seek the path to divinity and will do whatever they can to achieve such a goal."

"We were told that this certain thief can be killed while he is in a shadow-blind state," Tremaine said. "Is this true?"

“You knows this," the oracle said, looking at the sky—presumably talking to the gods—then faced the two once more. "You know this to be true.”

"We ask for the gods' blessings so that we may hunt this bastard down," Emika said. "Please, grant us this request."

"Few have received both blessings and gifts from the gods," the oracle said. He looked up again. " _Kamigami_ , do you believe that they are worthy?"

In response, a beam of silver light descended upon them. It seemed to ripple and glint as it traveled along their skin, and once it completely engulfed them, it disappeared. Emika could feel the effect already—she could feel something pulling at her, beckoning her to come toward that direction.

"Do you feel that?" she asked, looking at Tremaine. He nodded.

"The gods have given you their trust," the oracle said. "Do not fail them."

* * *

When they left the temple, they both felt an incredible urge to go toward the sea.

"I have a feeling this is going to get annoying,  _fast_ ," Tremaine muttered.

"All the more reason to find him quickly then," Emika replied.

And so the sea was where they went.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The oracle is Sasuke.
> 
> Also I accidentally deleted my first draft of this so some things might be a bit off? idk maybe it's fine.


	26. Go forward, do not stray. (Warcross)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connected to fic 25, which is connected to 15, which is connected to 14...
> 
> Tags: Alternative Universe - Magic

After a few hours, this blessing by the gods eventually manifested into a guiding voice.

 _Go forward, do not stray_ , they whispered.  _This thief must be killed._

"We already know that." Tremaine sighed. "I never signed up to be an oracle. This is awful."

"I don't think they care," Emika replied. "Anyway, do you think there's a reason why Ren is... reforming... by the sea?"

"Ask  _them_ , not me," he said. "Hey gods, do you have an answer?"

_He was once a Phoenix, but it has since been wrenched from him by mithril blade. Now, he beckons the chasers of storm, and asks for the tides to give him breath once more._

"So basically, since you stabbed him with that knife, he's going to come back as a Stormchaser and not a Phoenix," she said.

"You could decipher that?" Tremaine asked.

"They're speaking in English," she muttered. "I'm just happy that we can understand what they're saying, even if it's in a roundabout way."

"Not fun to get straight to the point, apparently," he said.

"Do you think we'll be able to get rid of Ren this time?" she asked.

"If it means not having to hear a bunch of gods speaking in my ear, I sure hope so."


	27. But if you cannot see it, is it really there? (Warcross)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tags: Alternative Universe - College/University

Abeni and Ziggy were studying at the library together—or that's what Emika assumed they were doing, but from the tidbits of conversation she heard, it seemed that it wasn't the case.

"You think that your dorm room is haunted?" Abeni asked.

"I swear, there is someone haunting me," Ziggy said. "I've never seen them, but I just know it!"

"But if you cannot see it, is it really there?"

Ziggy huffed. "If you don't believe me, then come to my room and I'll prove it. Ghosts are real, and this one does not like me! How am I supposed to know what their problem is?"

Emika joined in and suggested, "Why don't you just try communicating with it?"

Ziggy turned to look at her. "How would they talk back?"

"A seance? I don't really, uh, have ghost knowledge," Emika said.

"There are a million movies on why that's a terrible idea," Abeni said.

"All it really sounds like to me is that you're afraid of ghosts."

 _"I am not!"_ she whisper-shouted, but from the look on her face, it was clear she was lying.

"Then let's go talk to a ghost together," Emika said. "Do any of you know someone that has a Ouija board?"

"If it's the one with all the letters on it, then Darren has one," Ziggy said. "He might want to talk to this ghost too. I'll see if he wants to join!"

"Let me say this again,  _this is a bad idea_ ," Abeni murmured.

Emika smiled at her. "When have I ever had a good one?"


	28. Remember, you have to remember. (Wildcard, Tremaine/Roshan)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tremaine doesn't know why he's in a hospital bed nor the person sitting at his bedside, but they feel awfully familiar.
> 
> Tags: Alternative Universe - Canon Divergence

When Tremaine wakes, he realizes that he is lying in a hospital bed. He feels the wires that are attached to him along with the bandages wrapped around his head, but he can't seem to piece together what happened to him. He sees that there's someone sitting next to him with their face in their hands and he tries to figure out who they are, but he realizes that he shouldn't need to  _think_ about it; he should recognize this person, since they're the only one in this room besides himself, but he  _can't_. He knows them, but at the same time, he doesn't.

The person looks up once they see that he's conscious. Tremaine meets their gaze and takes in their features: curly hair, dark skin, and teary brown eyes that have dark circles under them. They speak first, but the only thing they say is his name, and it's said in such a way that their voice almost breaks after uttering the sound. They're English too, he realizes, even though every word in this hospital room was written in Japanese.

Tremaine decides that what's most important is figuring out why he's in the hospital, so he asks, "What happened to me?"

"You were shot," the person says. "The doctors said you're lucky. If the bullet hadn't moved the way it did..."

"...I would've died?" he asks, finishing the sentence for them.

They close their eyes and nod. They don't speak for a while, but when they do, they say, "I'm sorry."

"For what?" 

"I shouldn't have told you to protect Emi," they answer, eyes downcast. "You bounty hunters always go off on your own, and I was just worried that she'd try and do everything by herself again. But look where that's gotten you."

Okay, so now he has several pieces of information. This person knows he's a bounty hunter, he was helping a bounty hunter named "Emi", and somehow that led to him getting shot. Damn, what kind of trouble did he get into that somehow involved guns—especially in Japan? Regardless, if this person thought that asking him to help someone made them responsible for him getting hurt, they were wrong. "It's not your fault," Tremaine said. He didn't know what "it" was, but "it" involved danger and he knew that he couldn't resist a good thrill. Chances are he would've done "it" anyway.

"Jesse was right," they murmur. They look back up at him, and they must've seen the blank look on his face when they said that person's name. "Don't you remember? You have to remember."

"I'm sorry," he says. "I don't really remember... anything."

He hears them sharply inhale, as if his words had dealt them a physical blow. "What do you want to know, then?" they ask.

"Why are we in Japan?"

"It's where the Warcross championships are being held this year," they answer. "You've been a professional player for about four years now."

"Four years... Last I remember, I was playing at LAN parties," he says. "I guess that you're also a player, uh—I don't know your name."

"It's Roshan," they say. "We were on the same team for a while. You left, though. I don't really know why."

"I just... left? I didn't give a reason?"

"Now that I'm actually thinking about it, I think your reason's bullshit," Roshan replies.

"What did I say?" he asks.

"You said you were done with us."

He notes that Roshan's being vague, and intentionally so. He doesn't want to interrogate Roshan, but if he wants answers, he needs to be specific. So he asks, "Were we more than just teammates?"

"We were together. Then, you said you slept with someone else and left me," Roshan says. "I believed you for a long time, but as I said before, I'm starting to think what you said was bullshit."

"Is that why you were waiting at my side?"

Roshan opens his mouth to speak, hesitates, but decides to keep going. "I stayed because I still care about you."

"I may not remember anything, but I have this feeling that I never got over you," Tremaine says.

A faint smile appears on Roshan's face, and he asks, "Would you mind if I kissed you?"

Tremaine turns his head toward him. "Go ahead," he says, closing his eyes right before he felt lips press against his. It feels natural, the way he kisses back and moves along with him, and he wonders how long his past self was waiting for this moment.

Far too long, he thinks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The "four years" figure comes from the fact that Roshan and Tremaine met when the former was the number one pick, and Emika says that the number one pick "last year" was Ana Carolina Santos, "the year before that" was Penn Wachowski, "and the year before that" was Ki-Woon Kento Park. I assume the year before Kento is Roshan, but it's possible that Tremaine's been playing professionally for longer.


	29. I felt it. You know what I mean. (Wildcard, Tremaine/Roshan)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When you're young, you have no idea who your soulmate could be—you don't get the mark until you're twenty one. But when you do get it, and you touch them, sparks fly.
> 
> The last time Tremaine and Roshan were this close to each other were when they were together—when they were twenty.  
> Now they're both twenty-two, and one of them's lying in a hospital bed.
> 
> Tags: Alternative Universe - Soulmates, Alternative Universe - Canon Divergence

There's a sad look in those blue eyes as Tremaine starts his confession. He talks about how, if Roshan was the one lying in the hospital bed instead of him, the room would be filled to the brim with his family. He talks about, since Roshan _isn't_ in the bed, the room's practically empty.

Then Tremaine starts talking about Kento. Roshan doesn't quite listen to this part, considering they broke up a few hours ago and he's a bit sore over it—even though they weren't soulmates—but Roshan catches the phrase "he's better than me in every way" and starts paying attention again.

He hears Tremaine admit that he really doesn't care that Roshan's the only other person in the room since he might as well be the whole world, and it stuns him into silence.

There's a grimace on Tremaine's face when Roshan doesn't say anything. He starts talking again, but this time his cheeks are pink and  _oh, he's embarrassed_.

Roshan realizes that Tremaine's trying to backtrack now, so he reaches out to grab his hand to interrupt him—and they touch, there's a sudden  _jolt._ Tremaine turns his head toward him, and from the look in his eyes, it's like he's not quite sure that this is real. "I felt it," he says. "You know what I mean?"

In response, Roshan holds his hand a little tighter. "I felt it too."

They're both silent again, but this time it's because they know they don't need to say anything, rather than they don't know what to say to each other. After a while, Tremaine says, "I didn't think it'd actually be you."

Roshan tilts his head and asks, "Why's that?"

"I think you could do better," he mutters.

"Well, I believe that you've always been good enough," Roshan retorts. "Even the universe agrees."

Tremaine laughs, and Roshan realizes that it's been so long since he last heard that sound that he almost forgets how much he loves it. "Can't argue with that." Tremaine pauses for a moment, then says, "Hey, you should, uh, come closer."

Roshan obliges and leans down so that his face is hovering just above Tremaine's. "Like this?"

"Closer." When Roshan moves only the  _tiniest_ bit more, he says, "It's not nice to tease someone in a hospital bed, you know."

"I'm enjoying the view," Roshan replies.

Tremaine's not amused, and he pouts until Roshan finally kisses him—then, it becomes a smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can you tell how much I love the hospital scene by now?


	30. At least it can’t get any worse. (Warcross)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connected to [this fic.](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16157957/chapters/38180387)
> 
> Tags: Alternative Universe - College/University

It had already stopped raining when they arrived, so the walk to Roshan's apartment wasn't quite as bad as it could've been—though Tremaine had to do a walk of shame in his wet clothes. They entered the flat building, taking the lift to the top floor. When the lift stopped at its destination, Roshan saw the slight scowl on Tremaine's face and said, "At least it can't get any worse."

"Doesn't make it any less miserable," Tremaine muttered as the two stepped out. Roshan went to the first door on the right, took out his keys and unlocked it, then beckoned Tremaine to go inside first.

When he entered, he found himself frozen in place once he saw how incredibly large the space was. He expected a place with one bedroom, maybe two at most—something that a college student would be able to afford if their part-time job was as a waiter. But this? Roshan's flat was the  _entire floor_. Tremaine only snapped out of it when he heard Roshan shut the door behind him. "Is the Phoenix some sort of front, or do you just get a  _lot_ of tips?"

Roshan laughed. "My parents like to spoil me," he explained. "I told them not to since I don't want to rely on them, but they wouldn't budge. Eventually they agreed to only pay for rent while I work for everything else."

"That's quite the unique problem."

"So is getting absolutely drenched in the rain and needing a friend to pick you up," Roshan said. "Anyway, let's get you out of those clothes before you get sick."

As he was being led through the hallways, Tremaine was thankful that Roshan couldn't see his flushed face. Maybe he should've decided to go back to Jena's place after all—he was sure he could endure her ridicule far better than Roshan's teasing. He was brought to a door at the end of a hallway. Inside, he could see a double vanity to the right, a bathtub in the center, and a shower to the left. By now, he wasn't shocked by how grandiose it was—instead, all he thought about was the fact he hadn't had a hot shower in... a while. The water in the dorm never got quite warm enough, much to his and Jena's annoyance.

"I'll bring you some clothes to change into once you're done," Roshan said. "You could wear a robe in the meantime."

"That'd be great."

After Roshan left, Tremaine entered the bathroom and realized that he had to play the infamous  _"how the hell does the shower work?"_ game. He saw there was only an upward-pointed lever, but there was blue and red on the sides that must've indicated temperature. Tremaine stood to the side and tried to pull it—which didn't work—so he twisted the lever anticlockwise, causing water to fall from overhead. He tested the water with his hand, adjusting the temperature until it was just right. Satisfied, he got out of his clothes and tossed them aside, then got into the shower.

* * *

Once he was done, he dried himself off and wore what he assumed was the robe Roshan had mentioned earlier. He had no idea what material it was made of, but it felt incredibly smooth—silk, perhaps? He could only imagine how much it was worth. He heard someone knock, to which he said, "You can come in."

When Roshan opened the door, he gave him a longways glance before going over to the pile of clothes and picking them up. "Do you have anything in your pockets?"

"My phone."

Roshan felt around the pile, fishing it out of a jeans pocket and handed it to Tremaine. "My room's down the hall; you can pick whatever clothes you want to wear while I go put these in the dryer. We don't dress the same, so I thought it'd be best if you chose instead." 

"Okay," Tremaine said. "And then we can hang out?"

"Yes, of course."

* * *

Roshan's closet was unlike anything Tremaine had ever seen. It was as big as his dorm, filled to the brim with clothes that were organized by color. He took a picture and sent it to Jena with the caption "holy shit??"; she responded with a "i see you're at roshan's ;)", to which he replied "piss off".

There weren't any hoodies or jeans, much to Tremaine's disappointment, but there were shirts and slacks that were casual enough for him to dress in. When Roshan came back, Tremaine ended up wearing a red-and-black flannel and a pair of black trousers.

He was sitting in a red rolling chair at the computer desk, which had two monitors and a computer accented with red-and-gold LEDs resting upon it. A pair of headphones hung from the left monitor, a microphone stood before the right one, and a mechanical keyboard was situated in front of both, golden lettering spanning across the black keys.

"Quite the set-up you have," Tremaine said. "Do you stream?"

"Sometimes. I don't really have a schedule," Roshan replied. "I'm pretty good at Warcross, so a lot of people watch my streams no matter what time it is."

"That's a humble brag if I've ever heard one. What role do you play?"

"Shield."

"You've got to be a masochist, maining a support role."

Roshan shrugged. "It helps train your patience."

"Well, if you ever need an Architect to queue with, I'll be here," Tremaine said, slowly twirling around in the chair. "I'm a good Fighter and Thief too, but there's already plenty of those."

"I'll take you up on that someday," Roshan replied. "Anyway, now that you're here, what do you want to do?"

"You have Netflix, yeah?" he asked. Roshan nodded. "Let's watch a show."

"You look rather comfortable in my chair. Are you sure you want to get up? "

"Just roll me out to the living room."

"Or I could sit on you and we'd watch from the computer."

Tremaine stopped spinning. He was silent for a moment, evaluating the chances whether Roshan would actually do that, and when he saw Roshan making his way toward him, he decided Roshan definitely would and got out of the chair. Not that he would mind, but it'd be  _pretty hard_ to hide something if Roshan did in fact sit in his lap. And then, he would promptly die of embarrassment.

Living room it was, then.

* * *

They ended up watching  _The Great British Bake Off._ On the couch, Roshan sat upright, while Tremaine chose to lay on his side, his legs draped over Roshan's lap. Roshan quickly learned that Tremaine was rather vocal in stating his opinion on the bakers' choices.

"Who the hell scores a swiss roll? It's a  _roll_ , not a box," Tremaine shouted at the television.

Then there was, "Who the hell hears 'mini-cake' and thinks 'four-tiered Victorian cake'? And she's making thirty-six of them? You're kidding me."

And, "This woman's using a  _guillotine_ for her cakes. A guillotine! What kind of crime can a cake commit that warrants execution?"

Roshan found it all quite amusing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I watched the first episode of the Great British Bake Off and had some Feelings about it.
> 
> Also, so much writer's block omg sorry. But I did it!!!


End file.
